Customer Reviews

This Day: Diaries From American Women

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4 star:		(4)
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This is the kind of book that busy women can leave on their kitchen table or bedside table or briefcase. It is the kind of book that you can dip into for an always thought provoking, sometimes humorous, often touching read. My bookclub is going to read it, and we are going to do our own day diaries and share them out loud with one another. I think this book has made me feel linked to the community of women in a new way. A book to pass on.

I heard one of the editors of this book speak this morning, bought the book, and read it all in the same day. It is absolutely riveting, which is strange, because none of these women has a truly earthshattering day. Yet somehow, each one of these diaries or excerpts is a story in and of itself, and I found myself caught up in the trivialities of their daily lives. From sippy cups and string cheese to chocolate cravings to memorials to lost loved ones, each one of these women has so many stories to tell.

Some ones that stick with me - the newly widowed woman writing her entries to her late husband, the funeral home director going to pick up a dead man and meeting his wife, the president of NOW cuddling with her children, a 60 year-old woman getting her GED, and the barista at Starbuck's with the lovely metaphors for her line of work. And oh so many more.

What is nice about this book is that you could read it in bits and pieces (bathroom reading), or inhale it in one greedy gulp, as I did. I recommend it highly.

What a great idea.... It amazed me that in almost every diary, no matter who the writer, there was always a "familiar" feeling.
We are all so different, and yet so alike. It is an entertaining and insightful view into the lives of women everywhere. I recommend it! And once you have read it, pass it on....especially to the men in your life!!! I suggest Ms. Cole and her friends do it again!!!!

This book is so fascinating, so perfectly composed, you won't be able to put it down once you open it up. The idea is quite simple -- ask a diverse group of women across the country to keep a diary on one day. The result is complicated, joyous, sad, and amazingly interesting. If you've ever wanted to peek inside a friend's diary, ever wondered what women are really thinking, this book is for you!

"This Day: Diaries from American Women" is the product of a unique idea. What if you asked women all over America to write down their experiences on a particular day? What you would have is a book of the experiences of women from all walks of life sharing their day. That is exactly the premise to this book. Over five hundred women participated and shared their experiences of October 15. Of these "day diaries" thirty-five are reproduced in their entirety and over a hundred excerpts come from other ones. The range of occupations include business managers, retirees, teachers, a Mennonite woman, an actress, a professional basketball player, a lawyer, and an inmate as well as women who don't work outside the home.

This book provides an inside look at the lives of many, many women around the United States, If you ever wanted to know what goes on in other women's lives, if you ever wanted to know if you are alone with your problems or joys, if you ever wanted to just know about someone else's lifestyle then you will enjoy this book. An inside look at how we are all different and yet all the same, "This Day" is a recommended read.

I first read about this wonderful book on one of the services that provides reading guides for book clubs. I was intrigued by the premise, and knew I had to buy it. This is one book that did not let me down! I was captivated from the moment I began. I read in greed, hungering for the next diary entry. I completed it much too quickly, and had to re-read some entries. I found myself wondering about some of the women. (Many are still on my mind.) I am so pleased that book two is in the works. This is a book that is too good to miss.

I read these diaries at one gulp. A great gift book for your favorite woman, you will find yourself between the pages. Miss America, Ravi Shankar's daughter, the President of NOW, a probation officer. Women from all walks of life and then some. Divorce, problem marriages, happy women, young women. It's all here.

Interesting, poignant, insightful, humorous, real and at times provocative. Culturally broadening as well.

I've always enjoyed "journal" and "biography" books because it is such a voyeuristic pleasure to peek into others lives and learn that your own is not so unusual. I don't envy the job of the editors having to narrow their submissions down to those in the book - I'm sure they were all is interesting as those found here. I really enjoyed it and plan to make it a gift to my best friend.

THIS DAY was truly amazing- more insightful and much funnier than I had expected even though I had glowing reviews from a few friends. Such a strong combination of honesty, wit, and sincerity-- this is my favorite read this year.